PEOPLE BEMOAN the linear perspective and flatness of the camera view.
But the photographic gaze does not have to be lifeless and static.
In the spirit of “beyond polarity”–the overarching theme of our blog–and taking cues from polarity gurus like Owen Barfield, I undertake to share photographs with you to bridge the world of rationality and imagination.
The dance between our rational faculties and our imagination, all in pursuit of truth.
IN THIS PHOTOGRAPH of Mount Arethusa, taken in larch season in the Canadian Rockies (the time of year when larch trees turn golden), notice how the curved lines of the limestone ridges in the centre of the photo are echoed in the swirling sky above.
When I took this photograph, I felt that movement. I hope you can too.
It is a still photograph yet the image is able to override the camera’s preconceived mode of perception and maybe even trigger your imagination.
IN THIS PHOTOGRAPH taken along the shores of Lake O’Hara in Yoho National Park in British Columbia, the rays of sunlight barely perceptible to the naked eye are far more impactful through the lens of the camera.
While taking this photo, I could feel the warmth of the sun on my skin.
In this photograph, I can see the rainbow prisms of the sun’s light penetrating the landscape.
BOKEH IS AN AESTHETIC blur created by a shallow depth of field (notice the effect in the photo of the hummingbird savouring my backyard salvia).
Even in this black & white photo, you can see the sunlight penetrating through the boughs of this centuries old redwood tree in an old growth forest in Fernie, British Columbia.
MOVEMENT IN THIS IMAGE is created by the sun’s reflection on the water as the hooves of the elk pierce through the smooth surface of the Athabasca River in the early morning hours of another smoky, forest-fire filled day near Jasper, Alberta.
“If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn’t need to lug a camera.”
Lewis Hine